3,939,179 Shares in PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) Purchased by Norges Bank

Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of PPG Industries, Inc. (NYSE:PPG) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 3,939,179 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock, valued at approximately $470,535,000. Norges Bank owned 1.70% of PPG Industries at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of PPG. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in PPG Industries by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 29,369,691 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $3,508,210,000 after purchasing an additional 756,937 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of PPG Industries by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 11,717,499 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,552,100,000 after buying an additional 491,774 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of PPG Industries by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 8,977,010 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock worth $1,189,095,000 after buying an additional 485,597 shares in the last quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC grew its stake in PPG Industries by 138.9% in the 4th quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 3,196,951 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $381,876,000 after acquiring an additional 1,858,895 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in PPG Industries by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,136,570 shares of the specialty chemicals company’s stock valued at $403,049,000 after acquiring an additional 170,339 shares in the last quarter. 81.86% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PPG Industries Price Performance

PPG opened at $107.32 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $115.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $121.23. PPG Industries, Inc. has a 52-week low of $105.64 and a 52-week high of $145.61. The company has a quick ratio of 1.13, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The company has a market cap of $24.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.22.

PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The specialty chemicals company reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.65 by ($0.04). PPG Industries had a net margin of 6.41% and a return on equity of 23.78%. On average, analysts expect that PPG Industries, Inc. will post 7.95 earnings per share for the current year.

PPG Industries Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st were issued a $0.68 dividend. This represents a $2.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 21st. PPG Industries’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.51%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on shares of PPG Industries from $153.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays reissued an “equal weight” rating on shares of PPG Industries in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com lowered shares of PPG Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Argus cut PPG Industries from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on PPG Industries from $150.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, PPG Industries presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $138.15.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Timothy M. Knavish sold 4,800 shares of PPG Industries stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $118.35, for a total transaction of $568,080.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 35,833 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,240,835.55. The trade was a 11.81 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

PPG Industries Profile

PPG Industries, Inc manufactures and distributes paints, coatings, and specialty materials in the United States, Canada, the Asia Pacific, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. It operates through two segments, Performance Coatings and Industrial Coatings. The Performance Coatings segment offers coatings, solvents, adhesives, sealants, sundries, and software for automotive and commercial transport/fleet repair and refurbishing, light industrial coatings, and specialty coatings for signs; wood stains; paints, thermoplastics, pavement marking products, and other advanced technologies for pavement marking for government, commercial infrastructure, painting, and maintenance contractors; and coatings, sealants, transparencies, transparent armor, adhesives, engineered materials, and packaging and chemical management services for commercial, military, regional jet, and general aviation aircraft.